Brooder



Y `.,taneously checking the action of the heater'.V

Patented Mar. 6, i923.

hddt@ HARGLD L. 'WATSON, 0E LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA.

BROODER.

Application led January 31, 1918. Serial No. 214,636.

To all 107mmit 'may concern: l

Be it known that l, HAROLD L. lVa'rsoN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Lancaster, county of Lancaster, Stateof Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Broeders, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing.

My invention relates' generally to broodf ers for chickens and other fowl or birds and more particularly to brooders for little chicks hatched in incubators.

Among the principal objects of my invention is to provide a colony brooder adapted to take care of and successfully protect a large number ofchicks, in which the necessary heat is generated by the combustion of anthracite or bituminous coal or other suit` able solid fuel and embodyingtemperature controlling means whereby the temperature may be automatically maintained with great exactness at any desired point withinlimits.

Further objects ofmy invention are vto provide a brooder embodying theforegoing characteristics which is adapted to snpply the chicks with a maximum quantity lof fresh air while maintaining a suitable temperature and affording ample protectionfrom floor drafts or other currents of air detrimental to their well being; to provide a. brooder comprising heating means adapted to maintain an even rate of combustion during long periods of time with a minimum amount of care and attention and without dangerof the fire becoming entirely eX- tinguished; which shall be extremely economical .in the amount of fuel consumed; `and in whichl the fuel supply is required to be replenished only at maximum intervals of time. j

Further objects of this invention are to provide automatic means for drawing oli kimpure air from the hover of the brooder into thevheater to also act to check the action of the lire, thusv providing means for performing the double function of removing impure air from the brooder and simul- In the accompanying drawing, Fig. l is a central vert-ical `section of one embodiment of my invention, `certain ofthe parts being shown in elevation for 'the sake of yclearneSS, said figure also showing .in broken lines certain of the parts in various positions assumed during the operation of the invention as hereinafter described; Fig. .2 is a top plan view of the form of the invention shown in Fig. l, but on a reduced scale; Fig. 3, a tragmeiitary vertical section, and Fig. 4 a fragmentary top plan view, both illustrating certain details of the invention. Referring now to that form of the invention shown in the drawing, the same comprises a heater preferably arranged for burning either hard or soft coal` or other solid fuel, and having a body Q forming a combustion chamber 3 above the base 4, comprising an ash pit 5 and supporting the iire pot which may preferably be substantially circular in form and comprise an upwardly divergent rim or wall 7 surrounding a plurality of movable horizontally eX- tending grate bars 8 supported in the-center of the fire pot and arranged for axial oscillation in any suitable manner to permit the fire to be shaken when desired, as, for example, by lmeans of suitable intermeshinpr gearing (not shown)` actuated by means of removable crank adapted for engagement with a squared stud l0 projecting through the wall of the base 4,\the grate bars being preferably so arranged that they may not be completely inverted, thereby preventing accidental dumping of the fire during the shaking' operation. The base 4 may be preferably of substantially frusto-conical form and contain a layer of asbestos or other suitable insulating material 12 adjacent its bottom 13 to protect the floor of the building in which the broeder is located, and may also be provided with a suitable opening, closed by a swinging ash door 14, for the removal of the ashes accumulating in chamber 5. Thebody 2 of the heater,rsurr`ound ,ing the combustion chamber 3, lmay be also preferably of frusto-conical form, its greatest diameter being adjacent the fire pot and its vsmaller at its upper extremity, which is closed by a top l5 preferably integral with the side ofthe body and provided with a suitable charging hole 17 closed by a removable lid 1S provided with a handle 18 of` any convenient form, and also with a sleeve 19 for the attachment of the smoke pipe or chimney 20, the body of the heater being preferably secured to the baseby suitable stay bolts 23, or in any other yclonyenient manner, so that it is maintained in unitary operative relation therewith. 1t will be noted that the area of the grate bar surface is preferably considerably less than the greatest projected area of the body of the fuel contained in the combustion chamber, so that the fuel is caused to burn most rapidly at its center leaving a body of unburned orrelatively very slowly burning fuel, adj acent the wall of the combustion chamber, thus materially modifying the amount of heat radiated from the exterior thereof while permitting the fuel to be consumed at its center with suflicient rapidity to prevent the fire from going out. As it is extremely desirable in this class of brooders that the heater shall not get excessively hot and thus raise the temperature under the hover unduly, and on the other hand that the fire ,shall not be kept so low as to be in danger of going out, the construction hereinbefore described by means of which a relatively hot lire of small diameter can be maintained at the center of the fuel surrounded by a wall of unburned or slowly burning fuel `whereby the radiation from the heater is modified, is of material advantage.

ln the normal operation of the heater, the door 14 is kept continuously closed and for the purpose of admitting to the ash pit a sutiicient quantity of air to support combustion,`the side of the base 4 is provided with a draft opening 25 over which is securely positioned an outwardly extending preferably substantially horizontal arm 2G, the

inner end vof the arm being provided with a boss 27 formed with an upwardly opening chamber 28 which communicates withythe draft opening 25, the mouth of the charnv ber being adapted to be closed by a disk 30,

as hereinafter described, to control the passage of air to the ash pit and thence to vthe combustion chamber 3.

For "the purpose of additionally controlling the rate of combustion, the combustion chamber is supplied'adjacent its upper extremity with a suitable preferably sub stantially'L-shapedl damper 32, comprising plates 33 and 34 respectively adapted to con* trol Vapertures 85and 36 in the side and top of the combustion chamber, the damper being preferably pivoted on suitable horizontally extending trunnions 38 to permit its movement in a vertical plane when actuated preferably as hereinafter described. For the purpose of preventing the fuel from interfering with the movement ef the damper, the top l5 may be provided with'a plurality of downwardly depending teeth or fingers plurality of. radial outwardly extending arms 48 serving to Support adjacent their outer extremities a suitable curtain ring 49 over which is draped a depending curtain 5() formed, preferably, of suitable fabric, the curtain and ring being preferably removably secured to the ends of the arms as by the bolts and nuts.52. lt will be evident that as the curtain is thus maintained in spaced relation with the lower edge of the hover, an annular spacelor opening 55 is provided between the curtain and the hover, thus permitting the chicks when congregated inside the curtain to receive a plentiful supply of fresh air while receiving the heat radiated from the heater and deflected downwardly by the hover, although fully protected by the curtain from the detrimental effects of floor drafts. To afford a convenientmeans of raising the hover and curtain out of the .way when removing ashes from the heater, or when it is desired to sweep or clean beneath the hover, suitable cords 56, 57 may be attached to the latter and led over suitable pulleys 58 attached tothe ceiling of the building, by means of which the hover and curtain may be readily raised to assume substantially the position shown in broken lines in Fig. vl. A thermometer 59 may be arrangedv to project through the hover'in such manner that the temperature beneath the hover as indicated by itmay conveniently be observed from' abo-ve the hover.. j

To effect the automatic regulation of the rate ofcombustion within the heater, suitable means are provided comprising, inthe form of the invention shown, a suitable diaphragni thermostat 60 preferably adjustably supported from the arm 26 as by a set screw 62 passing through the arm, thus permitting the Vvertical Vadjustment of the thermostat as desired, a stud 63 projecting from the thermostat being arranged to bear on one arm of T-shaped counterpoise 64 supported on a knife ledge bearing 65 adjacent the. outer extremity of arm 26. A plurality off suitably hingedly connected rods 66, 67 land Glserve to connect the counterpoise with an "arm 69 preferably formed integrally Vwith thel damper 32, a spring 70 being preferably/'interposed between rods 67 and 68 to permit a -slight relative longitudinal movement 'between said rods for a purpose to, be hereinafter described.` The rod 67 is preferably arranged topass through a small' aperture 73 in theboss 27, and through chamber 28, and is provided with a projection 74 which serves to normally support the disk 30 which is slidably mounted on the rod 67. `H`ence the downward movement of the rod from the position shown in full lines in F ig. 1 is not limited by contact of the disk with boss 27, but may freely continue after such contact, thel rod merely sliding through the disk whichrestsupon the boss. j

The parts being constructed and assembled preferably substantially as hereinbefore described, the operation of the invention be'briefly described as follows: The hover and curtain being conveniently raised,"as

shown in dotted lines in Fig. '1, the fire may be started inthe heater in the ordinary way, the parts being` preferably so adjusted that the "draft opening 25 will be open and the damper at the top of the combustion chamber closed. The hover may now be lowered into its operative. position, as shown in full linesin Fig. l, in which the radiation from therheater will raise the temperaturegbeneath the hover until a point is reached at which expansionof the thermostat causes the gradualdepression of the adjacent arm of the counterpoise and consequent 'downward movement of the rods connecting the counterpoise with the damper, to simultaneously draw diskBO toward the mouth of cavity 28m boss27, to diminish the amount of air admitted through draft opening 25,- and also to gradually open damper 32 to admit'air to the top of the combustion chamber, thus checking the fire. In case the expansion of the thermostat should continue after' disk 30-contacts with boss 27, rod 67 may freely slide through the disk, and in a similar manner further ex pansion of the thermostat after damper 32 is fully opened, merely results in temporary elongation of the Spring 70, thus relieving the parts from undue strain and the possibility of consequent injury which might otherwise occur- When the fire is sufficiently reduced to lower the temperature in the vicinity ofthe thermostat and causo it to contract, a reverse action takes place, damper 32 being gradually closed and disk 30 moved upwardly to admit air to the draft opening, thereby again increasing the fire and in turn the heat beneath the hover. A substantially constant predetermined temperature may thus be maintained beneath the hover, which temperature may be varied asdesired, be tween limits, by suitable adjustment of the thermostat by means of screw 62, the iire being automatically increased or diminished through the operation of the damper and regulation of the draft'opening when the temperature in the vicinity of the thermostat falls or risesbelow the predetermined point.y

In the operation of the invention, vthe foul and most highly heated air accumulates in the upper part of the hover and as damper 32 isl arranged to admit to the combustion chamber'` air drawn from beneath the hover as well as air from the exterior thereof, the opening of the damper serves to promptly free thehover from this accumulation whichis rapidly drawn through the combustion chamber and up the chimney 20. l Of course, the damper 32 could be formed of separate dampers for each of the openings 35 and 36, and each could be independently controlled by thermostats within the brooder if desired. This action serves to materially assist in preserving the purity of the atmosphere beneath the hover and consequent health of the chicks, and also assists in maintaining a substantially even temperature at all points beneath the hover. It will also be seen that the damper 32 which causes the air drawn from beneath the hover to enter on top of the fire in the combustion chamber 3, acts as a check damper on the fire and hence performs the two functions of relieving the impure air from beneath the hover and checking the action of the heater. Moreover, as the hottest portion of the air beneath the hover is immediately drawn into the heater and out of the hover and fresh air is drawn into the bottom of the hover adjacent the ther- `mostat to Ytake its place, the prompt response of the thermostat, and, in turn, the fire controlling means, to variations in temperature beneath the hover and consequent automatic control of the fire within an eX tremely narrow range of limits is assured. It will be understoodv that when neces sary the fuel in the combustion chamber may be replenished through the opening 17, without the necessity of raising the hover from its operative position, and that owing to the construction hereinbefore described whereby the hottest portion of the fire is maintained at the center of the mass of fuel and in -a sense insulated from the walls of the heater .by a body of unburned or slowly burning fuel, the fire may be kept at a sufHcient intensity to guard against it-s becoming extinguished without causing the air beneath the hover to become excessively hot, and also with a minimum consumption of fuel, and the temperature of the air beneath the hover be maintained at a substantially constant point, determined by the adjustment of the thermostat, over long periods of time without any attention from the operator whatsoever. The action of the curtain 50 will, it is be lived, be fully understood from the preceding description where it will be seen that the same protects the ohicksfrom relatively ,strong floor drafts, and, by `reason of the top opening, or annular channel 55 between the bottom of the hover 43 and the top edge of the Curtain 50, fresh air is supplied to the chicks in the manner indicated. It will also be seen that by means ofthe cords 56 and 57, both the ho-ver 43 andv curtainv 50 may be` simultaneously moved from the heater for any purpose desired, as, for example, for facilitating` the removal of the ashes from the fire pit of the heater, orfor any other reason; l l i `While I have herein illustrated and described a single embodiment .of my invention with a considerable degree of particularity, Ido not thereby desire or intend to limitmyself specifically thereto, as various` changes and modicatlons may be made 1nl the `details of construction and arrangement of the various parts thereof, as desired,

' without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. v e l Having thus `described my invention, what l claim and desire to protect by Let ters Patent of the United States, is:

llfln a brooder, the combination of a heater having a combustion chamber, fa hover .surrounding said heater, a check damper for controlling the admission ofair from beneath said hover to said combustion -chamben thermostatlc means for control-- lingv said damper, a curtain surrounding said hover and spaced therefrom to provide an air inlet leading l to the thermostatic means, and means for operatively rpositioning said curtain and said hover relative to said heater.

2. l'n a broeder, the combination of a heater having a combustion chamber, a con'- ically shaped hover surrounding said heater, a checkdamper for controlling vthe admission of airjfrom beneath said hover to said combustion chamber, a damper for controlling the admission of air to saidy heater belo-w said combustion chamber, thermostatic means for controlling said dampers, a curtain surrounding said hover and spaced therefrom, means for connecting said curtain with said hover, and means for supporting said hover and said curtain whereby said hover and curtain may be supported and raised simultaneously.

3.- In a brooder of the character described, a hover formed substantially conical in shape, means for providing heat, saidV means beingarranged belo-w the hover, a

`curtain surrounding the vhover and spaced therefrom, means for supporting the Curtain', and means for connecting the curtain with the hoverwh'ereby the hover may be supported and raised simultaneously with the curtain. f

e. In a broeder of the character def scribed, a hover formed substantially conical in shape, means for providing heat, said meansbeing arranged below the hover, a curtain surrounding said hoverv and spaced therefrom, means for connecting said hover and said curtain, and means for supporting said hover and curtain whereby said hover may be supported and raised simultaneously with said curtain. y j .Y

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this th day of January, 1918.v

HAROLDl L. WATSON. 

